Despite accepting this flow of events and appearing calm on the outside, Calix was actually nervous. He had to remind himself that Leslie wouldn’t easily judge him.
Aside from experiencing such mystical phenona herself, her upright character also played a factor.
Leslie quietly darted her eyes from Calix to the face sketches. The overflowing questions in her mind were desperate for answers but, she didn’t want to force Calix to speak.
’What does he an by that? He has been dreaming of strangers? But... they’re and him. The old and Axel.’
Leslie unconsciously bit her lower lip, still thinking, ’Why? And... when did it begin?’
A myriad of complicated emotions washed over Leslie’s heart, reminding how she felt the first ti she discovered the sketches this early afternoon.
Uncertainty, fear and disbelief.
’Mimo can’t answer yet, but... I believe in my guesses. Still... I want to hear this from him.’
Leslie recalled her short conversation with Mimo earlier. The crochet fox toy appeared in its soul form instead of talking to her telepathically.
"Why does Calix have these? Mimo, what’s happening? Don’t tell ... what I’m thinking is true?"
Unfortunately, Mimo’s response disappointed Leslie.
|Talk to him, Leslie. I promise to answer you after you talk to him. I know what you want to ask but, please do that first.|
Despite not getting the answers to her inquiries, Leslie shared the sa opinion as Mimo. Deep inside her heart, she yearned to hear Calix’s explanation above everything.
"Leslie, I’ve been wanting to share this with you."
Calix’s voice pulled Leslie out of her trance. He finally broke the stifling silence between them. She kept her gaze on him, reluctant to miss anything.
Taking a short pause, Calix carefully took in the expression on Leslie’s face. He noticed the slight change in her eyes. Her curiosity seed to have an underlying concern.
Was she anxious over sothing?
Was it the issue related to these sketches?
"Until now, I’m not sure how to tell you because this is kinda bizarre," Calix smiled faintly, "Perhaps on the sa level as how your soul wandered outside your body before."
Leslie blinked. She didn’t expect Calix to bring up the ti her soul hadn’t united with Charlene’s body yet.
Thinking back on Calix’s previous words, Leslie asked, "Those dreams feel otherworldly. Is that what you ant?"
"Yes."
Frowning, once again Leslie looked from Calix to the laminated papers. More layers of uneasiness shrouded her heart but, her resolve didn’t waver upon facing them.
Better to get the answers now instead of needlessly delaying this issue.
"Calix, may you start from those dreams?" Leslie returned her eyes to Calix’s countenance, her own face grim, "And... How do they relate to the man and the woman?"
The slight edge and desperation in Leslie’s tone didn’t escape Calix’s notice. He didn’t know why she seed anxious when referring to the couple.
Did she know them?
The question crossed Calix’s mind but, he didn’t focus on it. Answering Leslie’s questions and subsequently telling her his secret was more important.
The ti continued turning and the clock ticking. He had better start now and ended it before it was too late for both of them to stay up.
"The first ti I dread, it ca out of nowhere."
Drawn to the beginning of Calix’s narration, Leslie’s entire attention was on him. She clenched a part of her nightgown with both hands, silently reminding herself not to interfere unless necessary.
Calix continued talking, his llow voice steadily narrating the tale of the uncanny dreams he had been having recently. He didn’t falter despite bringing up the bizarreness he underwent.
"I first saw them in there. The weird thing was... I knew I was in a dream. I was conscious of that fact. At that ti, I could move freely but in the rest, I couldn’t control my body."
Taking a pause, Calix reminisced about the first dream[01] among the many. The sensations felt so real as if it was not sothing projected by his mind during sleeping.
"I was inside an apartnt. A small one but, it’s tidy and clean. I found myself there in most of my dreams."
Calix clearly rembered the faded mint green walls of the tiny apartnt, including the worn-out yet clean two-seater couch placed in a corner. He also recollected the subtle yet comforting floral scent lingering in the apartnt.
With every dream, every detail only beca more vivid in his mind.
"I t that woman first. She had just co ho and... she was all friendly with as if I was..." Calix paused, unsure how he should word the next part of his story. With guilt in his eyes, he quietly uttered, "...her partner."
Leslie blinked, never expecting Calix to say such words. The blank look on her face struck him with panic.
"B-but! We never did anything overly affectionate ah!"
Calix abruptly waved his hands and shook his head, afraid of Leslie’s imagination going wild.
"W-well... just things like... holding hands and... hugging. I could reject her the first ti but... not in my next dreams..."
Leslie lightly shook her head. She carved a tiny smile on her lips and reached for Calix’s hands, trying to reassure him that she was alright.
"I understand, Calix. You said you couldn’t control your body in the next dreams, right? Just... please continue. I want to listen more, may I?"
"...yes."
Calix nodded once, still looking a little guilty. He glanced at their interlinking hands, feeling a bit comforted by Leslie’s touch. More words ca out of his mouth.
"I didn’t dream for long on the first ti. She ca ho with a mirror she had just bought. When she showed it to , I saw... a different face in the mirror. Of that man."
Leslie’s stomach dropped as Calix pointed to the man’s face sketches on the table, the one heavily bearing Axel’s facial features.
Her guesses... might not be far from the truth.
Sensing her lips trembling, Leslie bit the lower one. She unconsciously dug her nails deep into her palms.
Her voice shaky, she asked "...you saw that man in the mirror? As if... you were in his body, right? As if... you were him."
Calix nodded again, finding nothing wrong in the way Leslie worded her questions. He quietly reiterated, "Yes... I felt as if I were that man during all those tis."
Her heart sank, she did everything in her power not to break down crying.
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